Tottenham's Mousa Dembele - An irreplaceable unique talent
What do Diego Maradona, Jay-Jay Okocha, Ronaldinho, Ivan De La Pena and Mousa Dembele have in common? They are the five players Tottenham head coach Mauricio Pochettino admits are the five geniuses he has been lucky enough to work with in his career. On the day Tottenham confirmed Dembele’s sale to Chinese Super League side Guangzhou R&F, supporters were quick to pay tribute to the Belgian.
Signed in 2012 as a replacement for Luka Modric following his move to Real Madrid, Dembele quickly adjusted to the demands at Spurs and won over the fans almost immediately. In an injury hit six-and-a-half years at Spurs, some would go as far as to say he was the most technically gifted player at the club. “He’s a freak of nature. Physically, he’s a monster but he’s got ballerina feet,” Eric Dier said of his now former teammate and midfield partner in crime during the club’s almost-season in 2015/16.
That’s what made Dembele such a unique talent. On his day, the midfielder had the ability to effortlessly glide past opponents with a simple drop of the shoulder - of the 64 players to have attempted 75 or more dribbles, Dembele’s dribble success rate (84.3%) was better than any other player since the start of the 2017/18 Premier League season - yet any player who aimed to get the better of him encountered the immovable object. “Sometimes it made me angry a bit that people talked about the best midfielders in the Premier League and didn’t name Mousa, but I feel like he got that appreciation over the last two years.” compatriot Jan Vertonghen added in Dembele’s farewell interview with Tottenham’s official Twitter.
Indeed, in recent years, Dembele has finally earned the recognition he so deserves. It came after a sliding doors moment in the summer of 2015 where it seemed the player would leave Tottenham, with Napoli a possible destination. Pochettino, though, elected to keep the 31-year-old and he enjoyed, without a doubt, his best campaign in a Spurs shirt.
He dominated midfields with ease. Alongside Dier, Spurs had arguably the best central midfield partnership in England as the duo worked wonderfully alongside one another. He landed a WhoScored rating of 7.69 that season, his best in the Premier League, and the stats backed up why. Dembele returned a 92.2% dribble success rate that season, embarking on just seven unsuccessful dribbles of 90 attempted. What’s more, he averaged 3.6 tackles and 1.9 interceptions per game and not once did his pass success rate drop below 89% in any of his Premier League seasons with Spurs.
It’s a crying shame, then, that his body routinely let him down. Over the last eight seasons, he has over 50 minor injuries logged as a series of niggling concerns continuously cost him consistency in midfield and wrecked his playing time. Unsurprisingly, Dembele himself even admitted that his body couldn’t handle the rigours of Premier League football anymore, which was one of the reasons the curtain was brought down on his career in England.
On ability alone, he’d make most teams, not just in the Premier League, but world football. While in the end injuries hindered his playing time and limited his influence in midfield, Dembele will forever hold a special place in Spurs’ fans hearts. “There’s no one else who can do what he does.” former Spurs man Jermaine Jenas said of Dembele and he’s right. He’s a one off talent and one whose style and approach we’re unlikely to see again in the Premier League. Now comes the unenviable task for Tottenham - How do you replace the irreplaceable?
